tv The Situation Room CNN June 30, 2015 3:00pm-4:01pm PDT
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ay about a possible attack around the fourth of july. racism in america. with a charleston church shooting still fresh, our exclusive new poll shows race relations are getting worse under the first african-american president. also tonight, a community is being bombarded with ku klux klan propaganda. and building bridges. chris christie jumps into the presidential race despite the scandal that fated his star power. now the governor's wife is talking exclusively to cnn about the clouds hanging over his candidacy. we want to welcome our viewers in the united states and around the world. i'm wolf blitzer. you're in the situation room. >> we're getting new information about terror threats. unusually tight security measures are being put in place in new york and here in washington. and tonight, terror fears are
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growing around the globe. terrorists struck in three countries last week. the top state department spokesperson is standing by live along with our correspondents and analysts. they're all covering the news right now. first let's to go our justice correspondent pamela brown with more on the terror threat in the united states. >> more police are being deployed because of concerns of terrorist threats. this concerned is heightened because of attacks around the world including the brazen beheading in france. new gruesome details about the isis inspired beheading in france, and similar threats of attack around the u.s.
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today a french prosecutor said the suspect hung the victim's head from a fence. he also posed for a selfie with the body. >> isis beheading has been a tactic of choice for them in syria and iraq. we're now seeing this spread throughout the middle east and to europe. the worry is the united states is next. >> reporter: in the wake of the near simultaneous attacks in france kuwait in a beach side attack in tunisia that kill at least 38 people in the u.s. the fbi made its ninth isis related arrest this month. authority say 23-year-old planned to go to syria to fight. he is part of a group of isis supporters in the new york city area including a queens college student, arrested recently for allegedly plotting bombings in new york. >> i anticipate more more and arrests as we lead to the fourth of july holiday. that's to get these people off the streets so they can't
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conduct a terrorism attack will. >> reporter: terrorism officials fear the symbolic july 4 celebrations coinciding with the islamic holiday of ramadan will embolden them to unleash attacks. a threat taken seriously. the fbi sent out a warning to law enforcement officials a week in advance of the holiday. >> terrorist groups have historically been interested in targeting the united states on the july 4 holiday. they see that holiday as being very important to americans. if something were to happen, this would inflict additional psychological trauma. >> reporter: and isis also ensupporters to attack during holy month of ramadan. also important to note fbi says there's no specific threat around the holiday but as one terrorism official. with the evolving threat of supporters going from aspirational to operational, it is very tough to have credible intel of an attack before it happens. >> very tough indeed.
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let's bring in our justice reporter evan perez who is working his sources. what are you learning about these july 4 fears? >> it is very real for officials i've been talking to. today i was at the cia headquarters. and one of the things i noticed was just going in employees going in had to go almost through an obstacle course to go in through all the barriers simply because they want to make sure that nobody can just walk in or drive in to those headquarters one of the top targets. i talked on an official in los angeles today and he told me one of the problems is among all of these isis recruits that law enforcement is watching many of them are just quote, looking for an excuse to go operational. >> it's a serious threat. and they're making it clear. they may not have a specific plot in mind. there is enough so-called chatter that they're strengthening security and all sorts of high value targets. >> the thing that worries them is the fact that although they
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can see some of their communications, the fbi has been monitoring a lot of communications. that's one reason why they've been focusing on this week and on some other events coming up. there is a lot of peer to peer encrypted communications that some of these isis supporters are using. they know it but they can't see it. that's what worries them. who are they not catching on? who are they not watching? >> all right. thank you very much. even as the terror threat grows, we're learning about a significant new setback in the fight against isis. a u.s. program to train thousands of syrian rebels to battle the isis terrorists is way, way behind schedule. let's go to our chief national correspondent. he is looking into this. what are you finding out? >> for as many years as the administrati announced plans of $500 million to train and equip rebels today fewer than 100 have been trained. the vast majority have shown no interest in taking on isis but instead want to fight regime of
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bashar al assad. let's look at this administration's original goal was to have 5,400 trained in the first 12 months. the first cal end darr year. it started in may of this year. then it came down to having 3,000 by the end of 2015. here we are, end of june 2015. and you have fewer than 100. a company size division. this from really $500 million program. the military officials now acknowledging the administration's goals will not be met this year and adding to the decline, they say a large group of recruits that were already trained. they've been through weeks of training renalcently quit en masse masse. the pentagon has not give up on this program them say the focus is on quality over quaunl and they add there's been no shortage of volunteers. but a key problem, the volunteers don't want to fight
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fight the administration wants to fight which is against isis. they want to fight assad. >> an important point indeed. things clearly going no better across the border from syria into iraq. >> that's right. in iraq keep in mind you have a functioning government. you don't have that on the ground. yet this u.s. effort to lead and train forces. keep in mind, a $3 billion price tag since the start of military operations last august. $9.2 million a day. iraqi forces and we've seen this we've talked about it. fought to a stalemate against isis routed in ramadi and that's as they outnumber isis fighters and were backed by the u.s.-led air campaign. baghdad still overly dependent, u.s. forces say, on the shiite officials. and they've been accused of their own atrocities as they've been battling isis. particularly in the western areas of iraq. >> a bleak picture in both syria
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and iraq. thanks for that. we're also getting breaking news right now. i want to go immediately to our senior white house correspondent. what are you learning? >> this has been in the works for months. now the reality of ending decades of cold war tensions with cuba is fast approaching. senior administration officials tell us both the and u.s. cuba will announce tomorrow that they have reached an agreement to reestablish diplomatic relations and reopen embassies in both havana and washington. for now both governments have only had small intersection offices. but they will now be full blown embassies. the secretary of state john kerry will have more to say tomorrow. >> will they make a formal announcement? will everything out there and declare a full relations between the united states and cuba? >> that's what we're expecting. as for the details, when the embassies will be reopened and how and when throws the details we expect tomorrow. >> as you know, the president's
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approval rating in our exclusive new cnn poll up to 50%. first time in two years that it has been that good for the president. he had a very good week last week the united states supreme court helping him out big time. i know you asked him about that today. tell us what he told you. >> reporter: that's right. as you mentioned, that poll was taken right after what was regarded one of the president's best weeks in a long time of he's coming off those two supreme court decisions on health care and same sex marriage. not to mention his speech in charleston last friday. the question now is what the president plans to do next with all that political capital now that he has the wind at his back instead of at his face. here's what he had to say. >> reporter: it seems you've built up some political capital for the remaining months of your presidency. how do you want to use it? what hard things do you want to tackle at this point? >> the list is long and my instructions to my team and my instructions to myself have
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always been we'll squeeze every last ounce of progress that we can make when i have the privilege, as long as i have the privilege of holding this office. >> the president cited issues like infrastructure and criminal justice reform on his to do list. not some of the bigger goal that have eluded him like immigration reform and gun control. we also asked about the greek financial office. the president tried to reassure americans the worries about greece won't damage the u.s. economy. that comment could come back to haunt him if there's a global panic. >> what about iran? other world powers they've now pushed back the deadline is supposed to be today. the deadline for a deal is now july 7th. the new deadline. does that mean this nuclear deal is in trouble? >> well here at the white house officials like the remind us the interim deal was end at the end of march. it came a couple days after that.
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they think same thing is playing out now. the president is still hopeful for a final deal. he did offer some tough talk maintaining he will not be satisfied with a deal that allows iran the ability to build a nuclear bomb. >> i've said from the start. i will walk away from the negotiations if in fact it is a bad deal. >> now president said he won't be satisfied with a deal that amounts to what he said would be a few inspectors walking around looking at sites. instead he said he is looking at rigorous inspections. iran and isis as you've been talking about today, they may have a greater impact on how the obama presidency is remembered more than last week. >> thanks very much. let's bring in the top spokesman at the department of state john kirby. thank you for coming in. lots going on in your world. jim acosta's report that the
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u.s. and cuba have reached a formal agreement. they are reestablishing diplomatic relations at the embassy level as early as tomorrow. i take it your boss, the secretary of state and the president for that matter they may make this announcement early tomorrow. >> i'm not going to get ahead of an been made and i won't get ahead of the schedule. i will tell you that this is something secretary kerry has been working very, very hard at the state department. there is discussions and talks are still ongoing. this is important to pursue and we're looking forward to continuing that. i won't get ahead of any announcement that's haven't been made yet. >> will the secretary go to havana? >> clearly that is something we're entertaining but i don't have anything specific to talk to you in terms of his travel. what we're focused on is less the travel schedule and more the effort here in achieving the president's objective of
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restoring diplomatic negotiations with cuba, what that looks like how that's processed, how we do it over time. >> i take at this time announcement is tomorrow. does that mean the u.s. flag goes up right away? there will be full diplomatic relations tomorrow? a cuban flag flying at the cuban embassy in washington? >> without getting head of announcements that haven't been made and timing there is a process here. the reestablishment of embassies for the cubans in the d.c. and the united states in havana is something we have to get to. i don't know that i would be expecting that as early as tomorrow. >> all right. we'll take a quick break. i want to get to isis. what's going on. these threats against the united states. a lot more with the top spokesman at the state department. if you have moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. isn't it time to let the real you
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we're back with the top spokesman at the state department. we've been talking about the growing u.s. concerns about a terror attack around the july fourth holiday. i want to you stand by for a moment. our national correspondent deborah feyerick is getting some new reporting on these terror concerns. what are you hearing? >> what we're hearing is it is not just these lone wolf attacks that have officials very concerned. they're also deemly concerned about what they call isis directed plots that are both complex and centrally planned. now a warning went out to law enforcement agencies across the country last month. specifically citing the attack or the planned attack in belgium. that was disrupted back in january. you may remember that a dramatic shoot-out.
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during that time more than ten individuals were arrested as part of that extensive plot and counter terrorism police found uniform as well as small improvised explosive devices and firearms. the plot there was allegedly targeting belgian landmarks. as an example another spokesperson said there was the arrest of four individuals in the new york/new jersey area. those individuals all talking about a planned attack and how they would get to isis controlled territories in order to join foreign fighters. now one of the men was overheard telling a co-conspirator quote, i'm in new york trying to do an op which authorities took to mean an operation. now those men were arrested. two other individuals, however, they were able to successfully leave the united states. but all of this sort of an example of why it is not just these lone wolf attacks but it may be a coordination among individuals who were all
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planning to do something together. that's a big concern right now as we approach july 4th. >> some of these guys in new york and new jersey were actually searching tourist attractions, landmarks in the new york city area? >> that's exactly right. that was one of the big concerns. another one of the individuals actually had e-mailed himself plans on how to build a pressure cooker bomb. the fbi has been on top of this and the number of people arrested in the last couple months is a significant number. but national security officials, very concerned about this. >> they've arrested about 30 alleged isis sympathizers. thank you for that. i want to bring back john kirby, get your reaction. what do you think? is it accurate these isis cells are more complex? more details than lone individual if you will going out there and being inspired getting a weapon and killing
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people? >> without getting into intelligence matters, this is a group we're very concerned about. we've been talking about this for a long time. this idea that people can become self-radicalized and go join the fight and then maybe come back or come back as foreign fighters in general. and it is something that not just the united states is worried about but 30 other countries in the coalition who have taken administrative or legal action to get at this problem. so speaking broadly, wolf this is something we've been focused on since almost the onset of the campaign against isil. >> so heading into the july 4th weekend circuits out of an abundance of caution that the terror level is being intense identified? new precautions are being taken around high visibility sites? >> i think the law enforcement community and the department of homeland security has talked about this in terms of no specific credible threat. certainly it is an opportunity
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and a chance for us all to be a little extra vigilant here when you approach a holiday weekend like this. we know this group is still lethal and still agile and i think it makes good common sense for everybody to keep their head on a swivel and to be vigilant. to be aware. >> i think you're right. you also heard jim sciutto, our chief national security adviser to train moderate syrian rebels to fight isis in syria. it is sort of pitiful right now. less than 100 have been trained. what's going on with this program? >> i don't know that i would call it pitiful. we've said from the outset that it was important and critical. we still believe that. you have to have capable people on the ground in syria. we said from the very beginning, this would be a tough thing to affect to implement. we didn't have a lot of information about the groups and
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how to properly get them trained and into the field. so yes, it is a smaller number than i think people anticipated at the outset. i think we've been pretty honest with the american people about the skoem of the effort and the importance of doing it. >> i know the u.s. has budgeted half a billion in taxpayer money to train these guys. what part of it so far is working? >> well look i think we're fixated on the numbers here. which may be smaller than what we may have anticipated or planned. let's focus on what is happening. you do have opposition members that now are vetted and are now in the program. and they're getting training. and they're going to get equipment. and maybe that success will build on more success. it can be a cumulative effort. the importance is that we do this right and not fast. we've always said that. it is an important program. we'll stick with it. we'll pursue it. even through the challenges. >> let's talk about this iran nuclear negotiation that is underway in vienna austria,
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where your boss the secretary of state is right now. they've extended the deadline. it was supposed to be today. now it's been moved to july 7th. what's your analysis? what's the likelihood they'll get a deal? >> well i don't know. i truly don't know and i don't think secretary kerry or the negotiating team knows. they're focused on what's going on in that room and that's where their heads ought to be. it is possible we'll get a deal and it is possible we won't get a deal and i think everybody needs to focus on what's going on in that negotiating room. this is a technical extension and it is to allow for the parameters of the joint plan of action to be extended for another week and we'll see what they get. >> several former obama security officials, military personnel including general david petraeus among others they've signed this letter the other day saying this deal at least as it is shaping up right now, doesn't go far enough.
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they're deeply concerned. we respect people have all kinds of people one way or the other. our focus is on getting a deal that does one thing and the one thing is that iran cannot pursue nuclear weapons capability. that their pathway to fissile material is halted. that's the goal. the president talked about it today. that's what we're focused on. i don't want to negotiate in public. there are lots of things we have to come to conclusion on. if if we can't, if we don't, there will be no deal. and secretary kerry has said that no deal is better than a bad deal. we won't semithe deal that won't ensure that outcome. >> john kirby, thank you for joining us. >> my pleasure. thank you. just ahead, how is the president handling race relations in this country? there are some striking differences between african-americans and whites. we have a brand new exclusive poll and an indepth look at the
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newest presidential candidate. chris christie's wyche is now opening up about the bridge gate scandal and more. an exclusive cnn interview coming up. if you qualify for a sittingham's card today i can offer you no interest for 24 months. thanks to the tools and help at experian.com, i know i have an 812 fico score, so i definitely qualify. so what else can you give me? same day delivery. the ottoman? thank you. fico scores are used in 90% of credit decisions. so get your credit swagger on. go to experian.com become a member of experian credit tracker and take charge of your score.
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we have a surprising new snap shot of the racial divide in this country. as we told you earlier, our exclusive poll shows the president's approval rating has now climbed to 50%. that's the first time in two years it's been that high. look at this. he has a 91% approval rating among african-americans, while only 39% of white americans approve of the way he's doing his job. after a series of racially charged shootings and other acts of violence from ferguson missouri to charleston south carolina 43% of americans say race relations in this country have gotten worse since president obama took office. let's talk about all of this with our cnn analyst don lemon. what is your analysis? what is behind that number? >> well i think the president is susceptible to the news cycle like we are. he's had a very good run, very good headlines about the president. so i think that just like most people he is susceptible to the
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news cycle. the president has gotten a lot of things accomplished. they figure he's doing his job well of so i think the president has done a good job all along throughout his presidency and i think that these number can be snap shots into sometimes they mean a lot. sometimes they don't. but i think that it has to do with the president is free now. he doesn't have to run anymore. he doesn't have to worry as much about being a politician. and i think that shows. i think the american people see that. and they sort of like this obama 2.0, 3.0, whatever you want to indicate. >> the "l.a. times" is reporting that the ku klux klan is distributing fliers in a suburban area of los angeles. they did it over the weekend. what's going on with the issue of racism? supposedly if you believe this poll maybe on the rise in this country. >> i don't know so much that it is on the rise but i think that
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certainly it has been there, sort of underbelly of america. something that people don't want to talk about. and this you know president obama is coming off this what i think is a transformative week quite frankly, in his presidency. we're taulg about the supreme court rulings in terms of gay marriage, the supreme court rulings in terms of his key, and that incredible what i felt was a life altering experience that i experienced did you go his eulogy for reverend pinckney's funeral. so coming off that i think what we are seeing is perhaps a sense of hopelessness for those people that are subscribing to white supremacy. we're seeing that uptick many response to this week. but i don't think racism is exploding all of a sudden. but i think it is being highlighted by the fact we've had this president having such a transform i have the week.
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>> and as we've been showing, 43% in this new cnn poll believe. 43% of americans say that race relations have taken a turn for the worse. race relations under president obama have gotten worse since he took office. our first african-american president. when you see that number what do you think? >> i'm going to say something that will completely shock you and all of our viewers. i completely 100% agree with what sunny said. >> that is a shock. >> that is a shock. i don't think that racism has gotten worse under president obama. i think that it has been revealed by him, his presidency. i think he's been the mirror for what is already out there. so i think people are just showing themselves now and i think sunny is right. i think that people see the country is changing. it is a more diverse country. there are more hispanics, african-americans in the country and gay people now have equal rights when it comes to marriage under the constitution.
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and i think certain people don't like that and are afraid of it. and it intimidates them. and he think our country is changing. the country has been changing and they have not been keeping up with it. i think that's what is hinlds it. i don't think that racism has gotten worse. i think that you're seeing what was there. >> because some have suggested that president obama's presidency is unmasked some of the existing racism that clearly has always been there. >> i think that's true. we're talking about the first african-american president. many people when he was initially elected thought there would be attempts made on his life. he's had more security than any other president. so i think what we are again seeing is this underbelly coming to light that feels threatened by the change that we're seeing in america and we are certainly seeing that change. and i do agree with don in the sense that especially when i was sitting there watching the eulogy in south carolina we saw this president. i don't think we've ever seen
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we saw this authenticity that i don't think we've ever seen. this comfortable level. and that is probably also striking to many people. the swag with which he walked out to deliver the eulogy wolf he was clapping he was singing african-american spirituals. he sang amazing grace. that kind of thing. i think it was probably pretty intimidating to some people seeing this kind of authenticity coming from our first african-american president. >> authenticity or fearless. he is now fearless. >> i wanted to correct something that i said on 40 after the president -- i said many african-americans wanted to see him say those words or hear him say those words. as i made my way back from charleston i don't know if sunny heard the same thing in the airport. you know don, i completely agree with you but i'm white and i wanted to hear the president
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say. that i'm a conservative and i was really trans fixed listening to the president. so it is not just liberals. not just african-americans in the country see the new president. and they kind of like him, this sort of freedom that he has now. i just wanted to say that. >> thanks very much. thank you to you as well. to our viewers, be sure to join don later tonight, 10:00 p.m. eastern on cnn tonight. always has a strong show. still ahead, new security in place amid growing concerns about a terrorism attack around the july 4th holiday weekend. and chris christie's wife not responding to criticism that her husband is brash, even a bully. she is speaking to our own gloria borger. when heartburn comes creeping up on you... fight back with relief so smooth... ...it's fast. tums smoothies starts dissolving the instant it touches your tongue ...and neutralizes stomach acid at the source.
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my kids are costing me a fortune. i'm going to cabo! [ music plays ] don't settle for u-verse. xfinity is perfect for people who want more entertainment for their money. tonight the new jersey governor chris christie says he's running for president because americans are tired of weakness in the oval office. he is the 14th republican to formally publicly enter the race. he come with his own set of baggage. this hour christie's wife is opening up to cnn about the so-called bridgegate scandal, her husband's temperment and a whole lot more. she spoke with gloria borg here is here in the situation room.
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an excellent conversation you had. >> i did. mary pat christie left a very lucrative job on wall street to become a partner in the christie presidential endeavour. and she said it is time for an authentic leader in the white house. one who doesn't use a teleprompter. >> chris christie! >> chris christie didn't stick to his script today. >> i mean what i say and i say what i mean. >> did he stick to his brand. a straight talking take no prisoners leader. >> i'm going on give the answer to the question that's asked. >> not afraid of ruffling a few feathers. >> did i stay on topic? are you stupid? >> your rear end will get thrown in jail. >> after this traffic jam became a national scandal, the candidate who was once the man to beat is starting his campaign behind. >> we are going to go win this election. >> an unusual spot for a political star who for most of his career has been at the top.
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from new jersey's hard charging u.s. attorney. >> justice has finally been done. >> to an even higher perch as the deal making two-term republican governor in a democratic state. >> you think you know what it is like to be governor. you really don't. tauf job says mary pat christie but her husband was the perfect guy for it. >> he's a very complex person like any executive, leader is. he thinks four or five steps ahead of most people and just comes up with all sorts of solutions. he plays things out in his mind. >> i think he has more natural ability since bill clinton. that he is good. >> the form he new jersey governor tom cain has known christie for decades. ever since the 14-year-old chris knocked on his door while his mother waited in the car after hearing cain give a political speech. >> and he said sir, i heard you talk. i would really like to get involved in politics. how do you do it? and i thought for a minute and i said i'm going up to speak in
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bergen county tonight. get in the car, come with me and see if you like it. >> christie is now 52. and cain who has had his own ups and downs with christie has watched his fellow republican back political forceful navigating tough partisan terrain with a lot of back room skill. >> he is a little bit lyndon johnson. he is persuasive and a very strong way. >> with maybe too much public bravado for christie's own good. >> i can go back and forth with you as much as you want. >> has he learned over time a little bibetter self-control to keep the temper under control, to use it. not have it use him. >> so listen. you want to have the conversation later? i'm happy to have it. until that time sit down and shut up. >> if you're disrespectful, you may, you know be called out on it. >> too blunt too aggressive.
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>> i really don't think those are faults of his. >> you ask the question. i gave the answer. a hallmark of his leadership. i think our politicians don't state obvious. they don't tell the truth. >> i think america is looking for someone to tell the truthful. >> you give it you very well may get it back. >> that's the christie tell it like it is plan. he is proudly new jersey through and through. >> don't they know i am from new jersey? this rocking to more than 130 springsteen concerts. and feeding off the crowds. >> he has a lot of fun with it. he loves the debate. >> christie's own outspoken truth telling brand was test ad year and a half ago. >> i tworg cones. >> but it wasn't a laughing matter. stories had surface that had some of his staff had deliberately created a massive traffic jam on the george
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washington bridge to extract political retribution on christie's behalf. he fired them. >> i had no knowledge of this of the planning the execution or anything about it. >> while christie has not been charged with anything two of his former staffers were indicted and one former ally has pleaded guilty. >> people band only you? >> i think you felt that people were all against you. that you wanted to shout what the truth was. when you're in those situations you know you can trust your family. and so we really leenld on one another in a strange way. i think it was healthy. i wouldn't recommend it but it was healthy in some ways. >> it certainly didn't help politically. we're past that. everybody knows chris had knock to do with it. we have troe mine people why chris is such a good leader. >> reminding voters of the strength of christie's leadership in the aftermath of
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hurricane sandy. >> i remember the fleece he wore nonstop. >> i would have to pull it away to wash it at night once in a while. that's because he was working 20-hour days. he would literally go to the shore towns and walk the street. he felt people's pain. and he was able to just hug them. >> christie was full of hugs for everyone including president obama just a few days before the presidential election. a moment that some republicans found less than touching. it's a different picture now. he has gotten healthier undergoing weight loss surgery in 2013 but he's struggling to regain lost momentum. >> i think he has big problems. if this was another candidate with similar problems i might be writing him off. i know chris christie too well for that. never write off chris christie.
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>> what is his game plan? he has a lot of work to do. town hall town hall town hall. he will try to win back those vote here's have clearly lost confidence in him. you see him in the lower tier of candidates. new hampshire is a big part of his plan. he believes those independent voters those more moderate voters those vote here's care about entitlement spending run amok which is one of his key themes will listen to him. and he has done so many town halls in the state of new jersey. he wants to take that use that as a model in the state of new hampshire. when each voter back face to face which is clearly what mary pat christie believes he can do. >> so he has to focus in on new hampshire. not necessarily iowa. >> i think, look everybody is competing in iowa. the caucusgoers are a lot more con conservative. >> we have a lot more to discuss. a stinging new tike chris
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soccer. top chef. [whistles] soccer! top chef! [shouting] disco! [singing] say it and see it. the x1 voice remote, only from xfinity. take a look at this. live pictures of chris christie in a town hall meeting in new hampshire hampshire. he jumped into the presidential race formally today but some of the toughest critics are speaking out, as well. we're back with gloria borger, breanna keeler and our chief congressional correspondent, dana bash, there at announcement
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today. he was more muted in this tone? explain what you saw. >> it was nothing muted about chris christie's tone not at all. you know the way that gloria got his wife, mary to set up the presidential campaign that he's going to have was really exactly what we saw. just the fact that he and his aids made a point no teleprompter no text. usually behind the scenes presidential candidates sent out the actual speech they will give. they couldn't do that because it didn't exist. he had music stand, outline with notes and he just went for it and he used language that was certainly not lofty, not that kind of rhetoric at all. a little salty and certainly he tried to give the swagger that he is known for, the swagger he
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hopes propels him from what is the political of this right now. >> didn't hold back in criticizing the president. hillary clinton for that matter as well. gloria, let me read a quote from the new jersey star ledger. he is a remarkable talent with a silver tongue but if you look closely, it's forked like a serpent serpent's. >> they are dishing it out to a guy who dishes it out. chris christie doesn't have great relations. he's unpopular at home as are governors running for the presidency. his taste has had economic problems. so you know there are governors running for the presidency like bobby jindal like walker who are under wat erer at home but have to convince the national public they will be a great leader enter in
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additionally. >> the new cnn poll we released today has president obama's approval rating now at take a look at this 50%, the highest in about two years. what is behind this dramatic increase? >> he had a really good week you could say. this is a poll conducted between friday and sunday. mostly this followed the two supreme court victories on obamacare and same-sex marriage and americans feel like the economy is doing better and on friday he had a chance going to charleston to show leadership on race relations, which is a huge issue and actually this poll shows of a lot of concern to both african americans and white americans. to show the swing, yes it's at 50% but last month in may he had a negative 7% spread between approval and disapproval. that's pretty big. he's gone up to a positive 3%. so this is something that's good for president obama, it's good on these, it's because of legacy issues but it's also very good
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for hillary clinton, isn't it? as she looks to try to take the presidency. >> let me get back to chris christie. for a moment dueling town hall meetings underway in new hampshire. not only chris christie answering questions but donald trump with a town hall meeting going on. neither one of them you covered them both pretty shy, out broken. they will both liven up the race for the white house. >> very much so. the problem with chris christie's strategy is that he didn't expect to have someone like donald trump in there. he is supposed to be having a town hall but it started half an hour ago. i don't believe he has taken a question yet. he's been talking and talking and talking as we've seen him do for a couple weeks. but it does go to show how important new hampshire is not just for donald trump but especially for the man who announced today chris christie
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and one quick thing i want to add, you mentioned barack obama's poll showing he's doing much better. not since george h.w. bush won the white house in 1988 has a party kept control of the white house after a president's two terms and that is a big, big deal just as beeianreanna said. a danger zone for republicans who want to take the white house because history would not be on their side if the numbers keep going up for the current president. >> can i just say people are going to pay good money to see christie and trump on the same stage together in a brawl. i mean because neither of them take prisoners and that debate would be something i think that we would all tune in to watch. >> reality tv. >> that would be a great debate. >> reality. >> assuming they both make the top ten, eight other individuals on that stage, as well fighting. >> i don't think they will wind up somewhere together.
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>> see how they do thanks very very much. remember you can follow us on twitter. please tweet me at wolf blitzer and tweet the show at cnn. see you here tomorrow in the situation room. erin burnet "outfront" starts right now. "out front tonight" breaking news stunning details how authorities tracked down killers who escaped from a maximum-security prison. >> how an eminem rapper may have helped. concerned about a terror attack on the 4th of july and new signs of plan directed isis attack. more breaking news donald trump suing univision for half a billion dollars and he's on the campaign trail. let's go "outfront."
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